Noynoy, get your military animals under control! – Anakbayan

July 11, 2010

Youth group Anakbayan today blasted the Aquino administration for its apparent lack of control on the Armed Forces of the Philippines after two members of progressive partylist groups were reportedly assassinated last July 9

78 year-old Pascual Guevarra, a member of partylist group Anakpawis and a leader of peasants residing within the 3,100-hectare Fort Magsaysay, was shot around 4.45pm in his home in Laur, Nueva Ecija. Meanwhile, according to initial reports, Mark Francisco of ACT Teachers’ Partylist was killed in Palanas, Masbate on the same day.

The two are the second and third activists slain under the presidency of Benigno ‘Noynoy’ Aquino. The first is Fernando Baldomero of Bayan Muna, in Aklan, last July 5.

“Blame on this killing spree rests on the doorsteps of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. In the wake of Baldomero’s murder, the former insisted that the latter had links with the New People’s Army in an attempt to justify his death. Even before, the AFP has always gone to great lengths to demonize pro-people partylists with its sworn enemy, the NPA” said Anakbayan national vice-chairperson Anton Dulce.

After Baldomero was killed, AFP spokesperson Jose Mabanta said Baldomero was killed due to an ‘internal purge’ within the NPA, a charge which was dismissed by human rights groups as ‘pure hogwash’.

“We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: heads must roll in the military. We demand that Noynoy take drastic measures to halt the killings” he said.

The youth group had earlier called on the President to punish Mabanta for his statements.

The youth leader added that Aquino was also partly to blame for his statements against human rights violations, or lack thereof.

He said “From his inaugural speech alone, there was no strong condemnation of extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances. In fact, the word ‘human rights’ wasn’t even mentioned, not even once. Human rights groups have also urged him to order the junking of the AFP’s Oplan Bantay Laya, or to order the release of the ‘Morong 43’, to send a strong message that he will not tolerate the military’s abuses. But he did none of those things”.

“Noynoy has sent a message about human rights all right: one of indecisiveness, inaction, and unwillingness to confront the armed forces” said Dulce.

Finally, the youth leader said “Our willingness to give Aquino a chance is fast-running out”.